A penile prosthetic typically includes non-inflatable semirigid cylinders that are implanted in the corpora cavernosa of the penis. An inflatable penile prosthetic generally includes a liquid reservoir implanted in the abdomen that communicates with the cylinders, and a pump, often located in the scrotum, that is employed to move liquid from the liquid reservoir into the cylinders.
In a typical inflatable application, the user squeezes a bulb of the pump multiple times to incrementally draw liquid out of the liquid reservoir, into the bulb, and eventually into the cylinders. The repeated squeezing of the bulb moves the liquid from the reservoir into the cylinders, which incrementally deflates the reservoir and incrementally inflates the cylinders to eventually provide the user with an erect penis. The user may return the penis to its flaccid state by selectively transferring the liquid from the cylinders back into the reservoir.
Penile prosthesis is an invasive treatment that requires a delicate and often painful implant to surgically install. To reach the corpus cavernosa and implant the cylinders, the surgeon will first make an incision at the base of the penis, such as where it meets the scrotum. The patient is prepared for the cylinder after the surgeon has dilated each corpus cavernosum to create space for the cylinders.
Once the patient has been prepared, the surgeon will insert a medical device known as a Furlow insertion tool (U.S. Pat. No. 4,244,370) containing a Keith needle into the dilated corpus cavernosum. The Furlow insertion tool is a long slender device having a hollow barrel with a obturator at the rearward end. A Keith needle is used in many areas of medicine having a design much like that of a heavy straight sewing needle used to pierce tissue. The Keith needle fits within the bore of the Furlow insertion tool's barrel and is ejected from the forward end with the obturator.
In order to install the implant, the Keith needle is tethered to the implantable cylinder by a suture. The current prosthesis procedure, for example, as described in U.S. Pat. Pub. No. 20040167574, requires the threading of two ends of the suture through the eye of the Keith needle and manipulation of the resulting free ends of the suture before and during installation of the implant. This can be cumbersome and decrease the overall efficiency of the procedure.
Thus, there is a need for a solution that effectively alleviates the current problems associated with the implantation of inflatable penile prosthesis.